Date/Time
Date(s) - 17th September, 2026
18:30 - 20:30
Location
St George the Martyr
Categories
Next year, 2027, is the bicentenary of the death of William Blake. The poet, painter and prophet is much loved now, though confuses and inspires in equal measure. So how can his work be approached afresh and what might he be saying to us today?
Blake sought to awaken his readers to eternity, perceived with the eyes of imagination. His visionary work strongly suggests that the modern worldview is occluding that vision, though simultaneously fostering new possibilities. So to receive from Blake is to share his spirit, as well as grasp his critique. To this end, in the first of a series of Temenos Academy events to mark the anniversary, join poet and author Diane Pacitti, writer and psychotherapist Mark Vernon, and scholar and musician Valentin Gerlier. Alongside poetry and discussion, the event will feature new settings of Blake’s words to music by the celebrated English folk singer Nick Hart.
In the chair Professor Grevel Lindop
Speakers
Dr Mark Vernon – Psychotherapist, podcaster, and author of Awake! William Blake and the Power of the Imagination
Dr Valentin Gerlier – Head of Creative Cultures pathway at Schumacher College and author of the forthcoming Heaven’s Wildflowers: A Blakean Theory of Nature, Culture and Imagination
Diane Pacitti – Poet, novelist, trustee of The Blake Society and author of the forthcoming Divided: how we Separated ourselves from the Earth
Nick Hart – Ballad singer, composer and musical director of A Golden String
Venue & Admission
St George the Martyr Holborn, 44 Queen Square, London WC1N 3AH
£15 General Admission/ £5 for Temenos Academy Members and Full-time students with ID card